_You have all met Heather before. She flits in and out of my blog and facebook page like a wee birdie... mostly because she is a very good friend of mine!! But it also helps that she is also a bloomin' FANTASTIC photographer (check out her work!)... and we both love to be a little crazy! This has meant that there have been a few occasions where we have travelled near and far to get both in front of, and behind the camera for each other!

We first met in September last year at a photography seminar, after stalking each others work on the internet for a while! From there, we met in Timaru to do engagement shoots for each other... then in January and April, we attended each other's weddings, in Gore and Christchurch respectively. And 1 year + 1 day after we did the engagement shoots, Heather and I met in Arrowtown to do 'Flaunt The Dress' shoots for each other! Arrowtown had NO idea what had hit it that day.

Heather loves colour... she is a rainbow in my life and she radiates with personality and flavour! I had been thinking about ideas for what I wanted to do with her for her Flaunt the Dress shoot... one thing for sure was that it HAD to include lots of vibrant colour. Full stop.

Of course, my mind first jumped to cupcakes. An obvious choice for someone who loves cupcakes as much as me! And then... to rainbow coloured painting!! Why wouldn't someone want to paint a rainbow in the woods in their wedding dress??? Beats me.

But which one to eat first?!?!

Purple of course, this is Heather we are talking about.

Before we get too far... I am going to put a disclaimer in here for both Heather and I. You have to pretend that I didn't make the cupcakes (most definitely some of the worst cupcakes I have ever made due to some limitations being over in Queenstown - it's true that some of them looked like a unicorn had pooped on them). And Heather would also like me to add that the following is not her best artistic work... she was under severe time pressures, was getting attacked by swarms of fierce sandfly's that gave her welts all over her back, it was beginning to rain, and surprisingly, she had never painted a canvas stuck in between trees before).

Now that I have got that off my chest, let's get on with the images...

And Heather wouldn't be anywhere without hearts either. She has a huge and caring one herself!

The artist. The finished product. Colour. And the heart on the tree. Four things that make me smile.

And we found one lonely little purple lupin! Another of Heather's fav things!

Poor Heather has been waiting a while for this blog... and I have to publically apologise that since we did this for fun, in the middle of a CRAZY BUSY time for me, I had to do all the editing and shooting for my other clients before touching hers! I have been itching to attack them... and I am stoked that I can finally do it!

We also walked the streets of Arrowtown, turning a few heads and getting some puzzled look (has her groom done a runner already?!?!). Let me now continue to show you how absolutely stunning this girl is... and what a little gem the town of Arrowtown is.

Heather's dress is simply incredible, and was made by her talented mother-in-law! It is perfect for her. And she looks hot in it!

B.e.a.utiful.

She is a little bit cheeky, and a little bit funky.

And this is just to prove that I wasn't the only temporarily husband-less one who attracted the attention of a fine Arrowtown gentleman (see Heather's FTD blog of me)...

Heather asked me to contribute a photo to her 'Inanimate Romance' series. Her Holga went on a date with one of my Nikon D700's while we were in Arrowtown, and we think she's dreaming of wedding dresses aready!

This is one of my fav shots from the shoot... Heather is even more delightful and lush and colourful and exuberant than these daisies!!

You are a beauty! And your dress totally deserved a second (or ahem, third) outing! Thanks for painting in the woods in your wedding dress for me and suffering the wrath of the sandfly for it! You are an inspiration and I love that you are part of my life! xoxoxo

My friends are a massive blessing to my life and I am so, so grateful for each and every one of them! Some I have known for many years... we have a rich history together and memories galore! We know each other deeply and nothing could ever change that friendship. My old friends are always there, and I love them to absolute pieces! Old friends are incredibly wonderful to have in your life.

Then occasionally you meet someone new, who you just click with instantly. They understand you, you understand them. You have far too much in common for it to be normal, and you could talk for hours on end with them, about lots or nothing in particular, and it's all good. You laugh lots, do crazy things, and inspire each other to be better.

Heather is one of those friends for me. I can't believe we have only known each other for just over a year. She definitely slots into the 'fit to make an old friend out of' category, and is one of my closest friends. Heather is an AMAZING photographer in Christchurch (I am addicted to her work!). Our friendship has grown from an online, photography based friendship, to an awesome, deep, crazy friendship that goes well beyond our work. I love her to bits!

We both enjoy being a little random and sporadic, which is why this is a 'part one' blog. This was very spontaneous trip to find a yellow field to do flaunt the dress photos in... which was a BIG EPIC FAIL. Turned out the yellow field near Palmerston that Heather travelled from Christchurch to, and I travelled from Dunedin to, wasn't in bloom this year. Typical!

So we found another location out near Karitane, and made stop motions for each other instead. Or attempted to, as the case may be for me! Mine is still to come (I'm just learning, ok?!)... so I thought I would share just a few photos from our one-location wonder in the mean time! I loooove this green blossom!!! And when you add Heather in amongst it, there is natural beauty all around.

Heather is absolutely gorgeous, inside and out. I can't get too gushy on her, or she will resort to calling me names to compensate. But trust me, she is a good friend to have!

And she reeeeally knows how to work the camera, both in front of it and behind it!

You will be seeing more of the fabulous Heather in the next few weeks on my blog... because we are plotting wondorous things! Mwahaha...

But thank you Heather for being crazy with me, communicating constantly with me through our days of sitting editing at a computer, jumping with me, hating potatoes with me, giving me colourful M&M tattoos, and taking a real interest in my life. I can't wait to see you next week!!! XOXO

If you want to see some of Heather's incredible stop motion work, have a look at 'Flaunt that Dress' one of me! She is super creative, full of ideas, and came very prepared with a whole story board for this video. What a talented chick she is! (And she makes me look ok in a fast moving film, so I like her for that!). All credit to Miss Heather Ellis Photography for this stop motion (go check out her other ones here):

The best bit of that, was eating hundreds of M&M's off the grass afterwards... I mean, ah, just kidding... :S

Just over a week ago, the temperatures dropped well below zero, and for the second time this winter, we awoke to a white-out around the city. There is something so magical about snow. Even the most ordinary looking things become serene and stunning when dusted with a few inches of white fluffy water. It is a bizarre concept.... but one that never fails to fill everyone with joy.

A good chunk of New Zealand came to a stand-still. People became more friendly and forgiving, and everyone down the street had something to yarn to you about. Young and old went out to enjoy snowfights, make snowmen, and ride real-estate signs down the steep streets. Some had to trudge to work with plastic bags inside their shoes, and socks outside their shoes (ahem, my husband?!), but even the boss didn't care if they were late. Some got a surprise day off work, and checked facebook every 5 seconds to read yet another status about snow. And some cuddled up beside the fire with a hot chocolate and a good book.

And me? What did I do? Oh, thanks for asking! I couldn't quite justify a snow-day because, let's face it, conditions just weren't that treacherous in the hallway between my lounge and my office. I had plenty of work to keep me busy at my computer, but I had a hankering to get out in the snow with my camera.

I called on trusty facebook to find me a 'liker' who a) had a wedding dress, b) would be willing to get out in the freeeezing conditions in her wedding dress, and c) could actually make it to a location I had in mind (close to my house!!) without compromising her own safety! While I had heeeeaps of interest, the location thing proved to be the limiting condition - especially considering I live up a hill, and most roads around Dunedin were unable to be driven on!

But in true Southern style, out came the 4WD and the chains... and I had a model! The beautiful, up-for-anything, and looovely Rebecca Griffiths met me in her stunning wedding dress... with a puffa jacket, long-johns and gummies to keep her warm in between photos! Rebecca, you are amazing! THANK YOU for putting your life (ok, maybe just your warmth) on the line for me to have some fun! Hope it was worth it for you! xx

We had beautiful, soft, floaty snow for the first half of the shoot. It was thick and amazing! As it slowed down, the wind, rain and hail picked up a little... but we carried on!

Rebecca's lovely husband, James, came along for the ride too! I am not going to give him quite as much credit tho, considering he got to stay in his beanie and puffa jacket! Ok, confession... I was completely rugged up in all my snowboarding gear... annnd I even had the cheek to exclaim how much I was cooking under all my layers. I think Rebecca's ears were too cold to hear that tho...

Rebecca and James are gorgeous together. They got married in 2007, and have been working in Fox Glacier (actually, ON the glacier), and also travelling the world. They moved back to Dunedin to study this year... so we got the pleasure of becoming friends! Yay! They are hard-out snow and adventure bunnies... so I knew I was onto a winner when she offered to do the shoot!

Beautiful. I love this.

You are an absolute champ Rebecca!! Thanks heeeeaps for coming and playing in the snow with me!! And for not complaining when I made you lie in the snow!! Thanks also to James for keeping Rebecca warm and loving her, so I could get beautiful photos... and to Jacqui for holding the jackets and bags and cameras! You all made my snow day waaaay more interesting! xoxo